Xandros and Ally

Chapter 23 (Ally): The Signal

Agreeing to join Xandros for his family dinner on Sunday was...interesting. Possibly scarier than when Zed and I had faced our first class at the Foundation. Unfortunately, Zed wasn't going to dinner with me so I wouldn't have him for moral support.

"Am I dressed OK?" I asked Xandros nervously when he knocked on my door. Didn't even say hello because I was so on edge. Why had I told him he could take it as a good sign that I'd said yes to his family dinner invitation?

His gaze swept over me. "You're perfect," he said, taking in my red dress and a sweet pair of boots. They'd made me smile in the store, so I bought them, thinking I could use the extra confidence. "Beautiful. And we're casual."

Since he was in faded jeans and a polo shirt, I believed him, and that relieved my worry that they'd all be dressed in formal gowns and tuxedoes.

"Ally, you could arrive wearing a garbage bag, and we'd all be happy to have you with us."

I smiled at that bit of reassurance, and locked my front door. Xandros took my hand with the obvious excuse that he didn't want me tripping in my heels. 

"My boots are flat-heeled," I pointed out dryly.

"I know," he said, grinning at me like he'd gotten away with something. "But I just wanted an excuse to hold your hand."

You don't need one. Shit. Down girl.

So I let him hold it for the few steps it took to get to his car. Just so I didn't trip, though. He opened the car door for me as he always had, then closed it, smiling at me through the window. I couldn't help it -- I smiled back since he looked so happy. When we walked into his parents' house not too long after, it seemed that we were the last ones to arrive. His mother flew over to me and wrapped me in a warm hug.

"Look at you! So pretty, Ally. We're delighted you could make it tonight."

Cassia was next, and her greeting was just as welcoming, and then she proceeded to introduce me to about fifty more people, I swear, all relatives of Xandros. He stood right beside me, his hand at my back the entire time, and I realized that his presence was just as comforting to me as Zed's was. That almost made me stagger back a bit as the enormity of that hit me.

His grandfather was the last one to greet me, but that was because he wanted to escort me to the huge dining room table himself, much to Xandros's displeasure. We walked together slowly and he, like a true, ageless gentleman, pulled out my chair for me. Xandros chose to sit right across from us to keep an eye on me.

"Did that boy tell you I wanted you to sit next to me at dinner?" his grandfather asked.

 "He may have mentioned you probably would try to hog my attention all night, Mr. Nikolaou. His words, not mine."

"Call me Nik," he said, with a bark of laughter. "Alexandros knows me well."

Every time Xandros tried to talk to me, his grandfather pulled my attention back to him, asking me to pass him this dish or that. I hadn't expected family style dining with such a long table and so many people, but I soon figured out that every couple of seats, the dishes were repeated, so everything on offer wasn't far from anyone. Dinner began after a prayer and then for a while, while everyone filled their plates, there were only murmurs of requests to pass this dish or that.

Xandros finally got so frustrated with his grandfather, he asked him to please allow me to talk to someone other than an interfering old man who was trying to steal his girl.

Nik made a face at him and lifted my left hand. "I don't see a ring on her finger, Alexandros. Therefore, she's not your girl and is fair game. So I will keep her by my side and try to win her for myself."